Bittersweet Deception
by AnjaliMalfoy
Summary: What will Harry do when he finds out that the people he loved were using him? There is no mercy in his soul for those who betrayed him. Shattered and betrayed, he decides to leave the wizarding world forever. But will he go through with it?


**_Bittersweet Deception_**

**_By: Anjali Malfoy _**

. & .

A young man of fifteen years old stormed down the deserted halls. He had just been informed by Professor Mendule that he was longer allowed to play on the Gryffindor quidditch team. His emerald green eyes flashed dangerously behind his black-rimmed glasses and his black unruly hair was even messier as he had resorted to his hair as a place to keep his hands busy instead of Professor Mendule's face. His long black robes flared behind him and his long lanky frame swept towards Dumbledore's office. He still had a spark of hope that maybe Dumbledore would be able to override Mendule's decision. He slowed down his stride as he neared Dumbledore's office. He stopped outside his office and raised a fist ready to knock. Then he heard something very peculiar that made his fist stop midway.

" But Dumbledore, we've deceived Harry for nearly 5 years now. He's going completely out of control. Do you seriously think we can keep him in line for another 2 years? We only need him until he kills the Dark Lord or gets murdered himself," said the voice of Mrs. Weasley.

" Of course we can," reassured Remus," the only thorn in the bush was Sirius. And he was taken care of last year." Harry's eyes widened in shock. What did they mean Sirius had been taken care of? And what did they mean when they said they had been deceiving him.

" Look Molly, we can't tell Harry that he's not the vanquisher of the Dark Lord. He doesn't know that he's just a barrier between the real vanquisher and the Dark Lord," explained Dumbledore.

Harry felt as if he had been slapped in the face. His hand fell to his side and he stared at the door in shock and despair. A few seconds later, his face became red with fury and his hands clenched into fists. His breathing became shallow and he wrapped his right hand around his wand and threw open the door. The occupants yelped when they saw Harry standing there with his wand drawn and pointed at them. His green eyes were blazing with fury and his mouth was set in a thin straight line. His chest was heaving up and down with suppressed anger. He kicked the door shut and turned to face the people in the room. His angry graze swept over the petrified faces of Ron, Hermione, Remus, Dumbledore, Fudge, and the remainder of the Weasleys except Ginny.

" I heard every fucking word you guys said about me," Harry snarled. " You better tell me the entire story starting from the beginning or someone here is going to get hurt." He waved his wand menacingly at the occupants.

" Ha," snorted Hermione in a voice she had never spoken to Harry before with," do you really think you can hurt us. It's 11 to 1. Give it up."

" Shut it Mudblood! I wouldn't be talking you fucking dimwit. I've gone against Lord Voldemort enough times. You guys are nothing except a warm-up act compared to him. Get over yourself Granger. You're nothing." Hermione looked as if she had been slapped in the face and her eyes filled with tears. Harry had never called her that name before. She bowed her face as one crystal tear fell down her cheek.

" Harry," said Dumbledore.

" Shut it, you old codger!" snapped Harry viciously, " I want to know what has happened from the beginning. I heard every fucking word so don't think I don't know what you're talking about. I know I'm not the real vanquisher of the Dark Lord. Open your fucking mouth or I'll have to pour Veritaserum down your throat. I recorded everything you said outside the door so if you don't spill I'll play it in the great hall. What's going to happen to the old bat who everyone thinks is a great saint?" He walked over and jabbed his wand at Dumbledore " Speak!"

Dumbledore stared at Harry his eyes open in fear. His family name had always been one of the cleanest and respected. But what many people didn't know was that the Dumbledore family had been losing money over the years ever since Dumbledore became head of the Order of the Phoenix. Over the years, he had sunk himself into low and shadow deeds that would grant him more money. He agreed to split the money Ludo Bagman made from the Weasleys at the World Championship game in exchange for an Order of Merlin honor. He was the only remaining relative of the Dumbledore line. He had been able to keep his reputation up these years because he had made Hogwarts one of the best wizarding schools. But underneath the peaceful and honest façade, a sneaky and vicious man lived with the folds. Dumbledore sneakily slipped his hand into his pocket, hoping to Stun Harry but before he could force him to speak but Harry screamed " Expelliarmus" and everyone's wand came to him.

Harry smirked. " You've got to do better if you want to meddle with the boy who escaped Voldemort four times. I always knew you were a fool but I thought you had to be better than that. I have no idea how YOU could be the man Voldemort was afraid of. If he's afraid of an ant like you, a coach roach would paralyze him." Harry rebuked. Dumbledore's face went white with shock. No one had ever rebuked him that heavily before. Minutes slowly snailed by in silence. The lapse of time fueled Harry's anger. He kicked the chairs and then reduced them to dust.

" I'm sick of being nice. If I have to wait one more fucking minute, I will seriously perform the Crucio on someone. I am not afraid to," thundered Harry. Molly snickered.

" Oh, you don't believe me, do you?" Harry said silkily. He twirled his wand in his right hand and pointed it menacingly towards Ron who shrank in his seat. " Cruci—"

" OK! I give up. I'll tell you everything," Dumbledore surrendered.

" That's a good boy," smiled Harry coldly. No one in the room saw him press a tiny button on his watch, which would secretly record everything Dumbledore said.

Dumbledore sighed in resignation. " I really have no idea where to start. Please everyone remain quiet until I have finished everything I need to say. I will leave no stone untouched. Everyone involved in this conspiracy will be revealed."

" I lied to you about the prophecy last year. It was a fake, a fraud. I planted that memory in my pensieve and showed it to you hoping you would believe that YOU were the vanquisher of Voldemort. The real prophecy stated that the Dark Lord would take over unless someone of a pureblood and muggleborn was marked as his equal. Voldemort needed to be killed by someone who was the same creed as her was. Alas, when Voldemort marked his equal it was a pureblood. We knew the end was slowly coming. We chose you. Lily and James were amazing aurors and we knew from your birth that you have amazing capabilities as a wizard. Voldemort did not kill your parents." Dumbledore paused. " I did." Harry's face set in stone and his face was filled with so much hate Dumbledore was sure he would kill him at that moment. He could feel waves of magic vibrating off of the young man's body. " Their deaths were extremely useful for me. I would have responsibility of you thus I could mold you the way I wanted. Second, I had full control of Lily and James' money. I needed their money badly. The Dumbledore family line is not rich. I needed their money to fund myself and fund the Order of the Phoenix. I couldn't find someone better to choose. I'll never forget the look on their faces when I pointed my wand at them. I then used my power at Headmaster to tell the world that Lord Voldemort had murdered Lily and James. Minister Fudge had been in the plot the whole time, so he used expansive power to brainwash the public in thinking that they were targets of the Dark Lord."

"I left you on your relatives' house the day I kidnapped you. I also left behind a letter explaining to your relatives that you were going to be killed or kill someday. I knew how much they hated you so I played on the ploy that you would die in the end. They gladly accepted you when I told them of this. They had only responsibility: to drop this clear tablet with the shape of a lightening bolt in a liquid you drank everyday. This tablet would keep that scar on your head alive. It would function and you would feel the moods of Voldemort instead of the true vanquisher. All worked great. Voldemort was fed the news that Harry Potter was the kid that he killed and the one he actually marked was using a fake name. We were using you to keep our skins safe. I wondered if you noticed that I helped you with all those hints your first couple of years. I wanted you to fight the Dark Lord. I wanted you to meet him and hopefully kill him. Even if you died, it wouldn't mean much because Voldemort would think that he had won and the battle would be over. I would still be here to protect the wizards. You were our shield Harry. "

" All these people here had plots in this scheme. The Weasleys were keeping tabs on you all the time. You were always invited to their place because they needed to keep an eye on you. When you went to the Weasleys, they fed you information on the cruelty of Sirius. I made Sirius go to jail without a trial because it would be a great fact for my story. Sirius Black would betray his friends and cause the death of Lily and James. Arthur Weasley here told you about all the cruelty of Sirius hoping you would not discover the real truth. But Sirius broke out and we were alarmed. Remus pretended that he was an amazing friend with Sirius but Sirius eventually got too nosy. He found out about our entire plot. Remus had him killed by his cousin. Remus pre-planned the entire episode that Sirius would upstairs. All I did was blame it on Kreacher. Remus told Kreacher to tell you that Sirius was gone. We planned all of that. Hermione here helped Remus with his murder plan. We are all collaborators in this scheme. Ron and Hermione weren't your friends. I planted them with you. I had to tell you that prophecy because you were going out of control. We felt that we couldn't control you anymore so we needed to boost your determination. I loved the true vanquisher's mother and I wanted her son protected."

By the end of his speech, Harry was seething. His breath was coming in short small gasps and his hands were clenching.

" YOU FUCKNG BASTARD! YOU RUINED MY LIFE! TO SAVE ALL THAT FUCKING TRUE VANQUISHER'S LIFE, YOU SNATCHED MINE AWAY FROM ME! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO LIVE! YOU'RE WORSE THAN VOLDEMORT! YOU'RE TWENTY TIMES WORSE THAN HIM!" Harry yelled nearly in tears. He would not give Dumbledore the satisfaction of letting him know how much he was devastated.

Harry gritted his teeth and pulled out his watch. He jerked around and walked back to the middle of the half-circle. He turned sharply around and glared at the back-stabbers.

" Well, now I shall not be the only one who knows of your scheme. Everyone in the world shall. I have recorded all of your confession Dumbledore and I will play them in front of the Great Hall tomorrow," shouted Harry shaking with fury.

" No you can't," said Hermione in her smart-alecky voice. " You owe us a lot of favors. I taught you how to survive the first challenge." She smirked.

' I don't give a fuck about your stupid help," roared Harry. ' If I hadn't been the fucking target of Voldemort in the first place, my fucking name wouldn't have entered the fucking goblet. I can tell you have no fucking brains in that empty head of yours Mudblood. Go die somewhere! And you killed the only family member I had! You are such a heartless bitch! You and Ron faked our friendship! He was the only person I had, " shouted Harry. A tear escaped his eye and he pushed it away. Hermione looked as if she had been slapped. Her heart was slowly breaking as she saw Harry cry. He had never cried before; not when he had faced the basilisk, not when he faced the dragon, not ever. And Hermione caused him to shed the first tear that fell upon his cheek.

" And we have given you a home for the summer," chimed in the Weasleys.

" Yeah! Only to ruin my reputation for Sirius! And you fucking people owe so much to me! I save your life Mr. Weasley! I should have let you lie outside of the Department of Mysteries and let you bleed to death. I should have let Ron die when Sirius broke his leg! I should have let him die when the dementors were surrounding us! I hate you all!" thundered Harry shaking with anger and pain.

" And Remus. I don't even know what to say to you. You killed your best friend. I trusted you in third year! And I don't even care if you taught me how to ward off dementors! I'd rather die then save your sorry asses. You betrayed your best friends. I hope you rot in hell for all eternity. Go die Remus! GO DIE! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO STAND IN FRONT OF ME LIKE THAT! YOU FUCKING TOLD SIRIUS THAT PETTIGREW RUINED THEIR RELATIONSHIP! NO! IT WASN'T HIM! WHY DID YOU DO THIS REMUS! WHY! WHY!" spat Harry.

Remus stared at the ground, the shame slowly building up. He had no answer for him. All he could guess was that he did it for money. He never had a decent job and collaborating with Dumbledore would help him a lot. He was wrapped in his own needs that he forgot everything. Remus felt like the lowest person on the earth. How could he have betrayed James and Sirius? Those were the two people who accepted him for who he truly was.

Harry simply stood in front of them his wand raised and his face looking as if it was set in stone.

" I should kill you all here as sentences for your crime. But your pain will be ended too soon," hissed Harry. " I want you to suffer as much as I did. I want you to pay for everything you've done. You're going to watch all your reputation mix with the dirt. Remus, people will know you're a werewolf; they won't spare you then. Dumbledore, you're meticulous image is not tarnished. Fudge, your reputation is down and soon you guys will be sacked. All of you guys will face humiliation and what worse punishment is there than to live through it," Harry hissed his eyes glowing. The people in the room back away when his eyes slowly turned into a bottomless pool of red and green. He smirked viciously and then sharply to Fudge, who flinched and then slowly shrank back in his seat as Harry advanced towards him with a crazy smile inhabiting his face.

" You!" Harry snarled. " Go tell your people that they need to set up a press conference for Harry Potter. Do it now BOY! I want it set TOMMORROW!

Fudge flinched and quickly scurried out of the room. He pointed his wand at Ron and narrowed his eyes. Ron's eyes grew wide and he put his hands up to shield himself. Harry chuckled coldly.

" Trakula," muttered Harry. Ron yelled but was surprised that only a bracelet appeared on his elbow. Harry jerked around and did the same to all the others.

" It's a tracking device. IF I FIND OUT THAT ONE OF YOU HAD DESERTED, I WILL TRACK YOU AND PUT YOU A MOST PAINFUL DEATH! DO YOU UNDERSTAND!"

The groups quickly nodded their head meekly; they look scared and horrified.

" NOW OUT!" yelled Harry. The group quickly jerked up and practically ran out of the room. Harry smirked but his grin dissolved when he thought of his parents and Sirius. He walked to the closest chair and sank into it. He wrapped his face in his arms and cried. He cried for himself and his ruined life; he cried for his parents and he cried for Sirius. Then his face tear streaked he slowly raised his face. He set his jaw and his eyes blazed with anger.

" I swear on you mum, dad, and Sirius. I will make them pay if it's the last thing I do. They will repent for whatever they did. This country will come to ruins and I will make sure it does. They have lost their savior. They are now doomed," Harry muttered solemnly. He then stood up in a swift motion, wiped his face, and then swept out of the room.

' Ginny wasn't mentioned," Harry through. " I should see if she did anything as well." He gritted his teeth and yanked out the Marauders Map. He scanned it viciously and saw that she was in the dungeons with Professor Snape. With a whirl of his robes, he thundered towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

Ginny and Professor Snape were discussing the Killing Curse when the door suddenly banged open. A livid Harry Potter slammed the door open with the force of a 100 elephants and barged in, his green eyes blazing and his robes flying behind him. Snape slammed his book shut and started rushing at it. As he reached Harry, Harry just pushed him out of the way sending Snape flying in a bookshelf. The books fell down and covered Snape. Harry reached Ginny and grabbed her forearm. Ginny yelped in pain.

" Stop Harry," whimpered Ginny. " You're hurting me. What's wrong with you?"

" Shut up," yelled Harry harshly. Ginny shut up for fear. " Answer me now! Did you have anything to do with betraying me like the rest of your fucking family?" He shook Ginny.

" No," whispered Ginny.

" I don't believe you!" Harry roared. He dug into his robes and pulled out a bottle of veritaserum. He grabbed Ginny's arms and put them behind her back. He pried her mouth open and mouth some down. Ginny opened her mouth to spit it out but Harry covered her mouth with his own and forced her to swallow it. Ginny looked furious. Her face was red with anger and humiliation. She looked as if her hair was on fire. Harry shook her arm and asked her the same question. Ginny complacently nodded no.

Harry let go of Ginny and sank into a chair that had been previously occupied by Professor Snape. He waved his wand and the veritaserum left her. Ginny stood up her eyes blazing and her hands on her hips.

" All right Harry! JUST WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!" Ginny yelled. Snape by this time had unburied himself and had rushed at Harry looking livid. Harry held out his hands and handed them the tape recorder. Snape pressed the Play button looking suspicious. The entire story came out and by the end Ginny was in tears and Snape was looking murderous.

" I thought that Ginny might be involved so I came here to get the truth. I also wanted to say good-bye to you guys. Professor Snape, I want to thank you for everything you've done even though you hated me. You never treated me differently that anyone else and you helped me with different spells such as Legilimens. I will miss you guys greatly when I leave tomorrow." Harry got up, gave Ginny a kiss on the cheek, shook Snape's hand and then swiftly turned around to leave when a voice stopped him.

" Can I go with you Harry," asked Ginny. " My family has betrayed me as well as they have betrayed you. I have no one left here and I would love to live with you." Harry smiled and held his hand out to Ginny.

Snape turned to Harry. " I have no desire to be living in a world such as this. I will come with you too. I understand if you don't want me too come. I have been extremely rude to you over these 6 years," muttered Snape looking down at his feet. Harry smiled.

" No, you've changed this year towards me after I saved your life in the fall. You were one person who didn't betray me and I could use anyone like that now. I want you to come with me."

Snape smiled at Harry for the first time. They shook hands and settled down to plan an escape. Harry explained to them how he wanted to disappear at his press conference with Ginny and Snape. As they worked, Snape and Harry slowly began to warm up to each other. Soon, they were working as friends and not as foes. Around 11 o'clock, the trio went to bed proud and excited about the next day's events.

. & .

The next day, Harry woke up bright and early. There was no sun and the sky was covered with heavy black clouds. Harry chuckled to himself; the weather portrayed exactly how he was feeling. Harry took a shower, brushed his teeth, and then got dressed. He quickly packed the most important things such as his parent's album and quickly packed a small backpack. Within an hour, Ginny and Snape had woken up. They went through the same routine, as Harry and soon they were ready to face the entire wizarding world.

An hour later, a cold looking Harry and his two accomplices were standing on the side of the stage. A nervous looking Fudge came up to Harry but Harry just pushed him aside and started to climb the chairs to the stairs. He sat in the middle seat and Ginny and Snape sat on seats on either side of him. Slowly the room slowly quieted. Harry leaned forward to speak in the microphone and let his gaze skim over the occupants in the room. He stopped when he saw Hermione, Ron, Fudge, the Weasleys, Dumbledore, and Remus sitting in a clump together. Each face was wearing an expression of fear and apprehension. Harry chuckled and his mouth twisted into a lopsided evil smile. He then scanned the rest of the crowd and stopped when he saw someone with a scar identical to his on their forehead. He moved and opened his mouth.

" Hello. Most of you guys know me as the Boy-Who-Lived. But you guys have been lied to. I am not the boy-who-lived. I was merely a pawn who was used to save your hides from Voldemort,' Harry hissed. " I was lied to, cheated, and robbed. I WAS ROBBED ON MY PARENTS, MY CHILDHOOD, AND MY HAPPINESS! YOU WISH TO HEAR THE ACTUAL TRUTH? HERE IT IS!" yelled Harry causing the audience to flinch. He reached in his pocket and took out the tape recorder. He laughed at the group that betrayed him when he saw their faces go white and their bodies grow rigid. He clicked the play button and the scene yesterday came on. Slowly the audience comprended what happened over the past years. Some people's faces grew red with anger while others grew white. At the end, Harry smiled coldly at the audience.

" I have been betrayed really horribly. I have been a puppet for 6 fucking years! I WILL NOT BE A PUPPET ANY LONGER! I AM LEAVING FOREVER! YOUR LIFE IS IN YOUR HANDS! YOU NO LONGER HAVE ME AS YOUR SHIELD TO SACRIFICE! YOU GUYS WANT TO KNOW WHO THE REAL VANQUISHER IS! LOOK OVER THERE," Harry spat. Harry raised a shaky middle finger and pointed to a young man in the middle of the crowd. His hair had turned black and a scar had appeared on his forehead. The boy looked shaken and pale. His eyes darted around looking for a way to escape out of the crowd without being noticed.

" Meet Draco Malfoy, the real vanquisher of Voldemort," yelled Harry. " He is your savior! Appeal to him for your safety now! I'm out of here! Good-bye all!" He started chanting, as did Ginny and Snape. The crowd stared stricken at the stage. A few minutes later, a brilliant flash of light blinded the audience. The audience covered their eyes with their arms shielding them from the light. As the light subsided, Harry's, Ginny's, and Snape's seats were vacant. The crowd yelled in surprise and some started crying. Some were in complete shock as they stared at the stage. Then the crowd turned towards the betrayers as one and slowly encircled them. Then they pounced.

. & .

Harry sighed as he relaxed on the porch of his new house. He, Snape, and Ginny had settled down quite comfortably in their new home. Harry's scar had vanished completely but otherwise he looked the same. He sighed happily as he watched the sunset.

" What are you sighing about," a sweet voice murmured in his ear as a pair of soft arms circled his neck. Harry smiled up at the red-headed girl behind him.

" I'm just thinking about how happy I am now," said Harry sighing.

" Was the deception pure bitter or was there some good stuff," asked Ginny timidly.

" Well," said Harry thoughtfully, " I would say it hurt me a lot. I lost my parents, Sirius, and everything held dear to me for 11 years. When I got accepted into Hogwarts, I met Ron and Hermione and I felt loved for the first time. But then that all crashed down. But there was a silver lining to the deception. The bright side is that I'm able to live a fear-free life. I'm able to wander around like a normal person. I'm not treated extra special because I defeated Voldemort five times. Also, I have amazing wand skills. And, I got you and Snape by my side. I've attained my freedom, which I never had before. The thought of Voldemort doesn't plague me anymore. I can wander around not having to worry if Voldemort will corner me."

Harry paused. " So, all in all, I would say that it was a bittersweet deception."

* * *

_A/N: PLEASE READ AND REVIEW! Just to add, Voldemort did take over the wizarding world without Harry. It wouldn't fit with my ending cuz I wanted to end with the title. Yes, all the betrayers were brutally murdered. Harry lived with Ginny. Snape was there as well. _


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